


Ineluctable

by cyorui



Category: xReader - Fandom
Genre: Capture, Dark Feelings, Drama, Escape, Eventual Romance, Fanfiction, Female Reader, Friendship, Harem, Love, Lovers, Male - Freeform, Obsessive Behavior, Original Characters - Freeform, Panic, Possession, Possessive Behavior, Reverse Harem, Romance, Tears, Twisted, Unrequited Love, Yandere, misfortune, obsessive - Freeform, reader - Freeform, trope, twisted feelings, x Reader, yandere males
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-11
Updated: 2018-03-11
Packaged: 2019-03-29 20:30:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,363
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13934808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cyorui/pseuds/cyorui
Summary: After a nearby private school is shut down, an influx of students pour into (Y/N)'s high school. Amidst the group of new students were some rather intriguing individuals.Even as junior year rolls along, (Y/N) finds herself unable to fully escape the attentions of several intriguingly attentive members of her grade. And, as their aforementioned attentions grow ever more destructive, (Y/N) begins to fear for her own safety.What sort of thing will she be dragged into this time?





	1. Influx

** October 10, Wednesday **

School was an ever-prevalent concern humming somewhere between the foreground and backwaters of every student's brain, sometimes rearing its spiked head to remind a poor soul of a test they had forgotten to prepare for. (Y/N), a generally inconspicuous student, could most definitely testify to that.

Even though school had been in session for over a month already, (Y/N) still hadn't yet managed to adapt and adjust to the rushed humdrum of the school environment, sometimes having to muddle late into the night, up till even two in the morning, to complete her assignments on time. (Would that count as early, then?)

(Y/N) was a mess; her friends, however, had already wrestled their tumultuous schedules into submission, leaving her in an isolated tangle of late-night study sessions. Of course, it was nothing new - (Y/N) had never been the most adept at organizing her time. Every day, she would consolidate her motivation to be productive, only to have that vaguely solid commitment deflate into a ghost of its former self by noon.

As (Y/N) continued on her way in her morning haze, her mood declined in proportion to her vicinity to the education-oriented structure. She reasoned that her emotions would lift once she came into contact with her friends, all of whom had arrived earlier than she, no doubt. She was, for once, correct in her assumptions. The second her eyes landed on her befriended peers, (Y/N) could feel her mood lifting.

"Mio!" (Y/N) greeted, smiling for the first time that morning. Her gaze swept over the three figures standing in front of her. "Teo! Rowan!"

"Yo," Teo answered, first to reply. His greeting was followed by a cheerful "Hey," from Mio. Rowan smiled briefly at (Y/N), before returning to what seemed to be a scavenger hunt in the backpack lying on the ground in front of her bent posture.

Noticing the absence of two regular presences, (Y/N) frowned before inquiring of her present friends, "So, where are Jisu and Ashli? Aren't they here yet?"

"I'm pretty sure they're here," Mio answered, sounding about as sure as a young doe's footing on a thinly iced pond. "Jisu refuses to miss school, like, ever, so she has to be here. I'm not sure about Ashli."

"Ashli's gonna be late," Teo supplied, having pulled out his phone. Perhaps he was checking in with Ashli. (Y/N)'s theory was confirmed as Teo squinted through his glasses at the screen and ran a hand through his artificially purple hair, reading aloud, "'Sorry man, I got a doctor's appointment in the morning; I sprained my knee last week, remember? You're going to-'"

Inhaling sharply, Teo exited the app and shut off his phone, before shoving it harshly into his pocket. Confronting his confused friends (and presumably Rowan, who was still digging around in her backpack), Teo announced in an embarrassed tone, "He used the wrong 'you're'."

"Damn, Teo," Rowan remarked, shaking her head. It appeared that she had been listening while busying herself with her backpack. "What a nerd."

Stifling his embarrassment with staged outrage, Teo took a step towards her and whipped out his phone to smack her smartly on the head. He stiffly blustered, "Grammar is important. Learn that before you fail your goddamn English class."

The bell cut short any further vocalisations, effectively nullifying whatever well-natured comeback Rowan had been preparing to fire back. Shaken out of their roles as spectators, (Y/N) and Mio prepared to begin navigating towards their respective classroom. No one currently present shared her first period with her - Jisu being one of the few faces she recognized amongst the population of her first class.

"Bye," Mio voiced the socially expected phrase before turning to power-walk to class.

In a similar fashion, Teo departed with not much more than a fumbling adjustment of his glasses and a wave. Seemingly having given up on her item hunt for the moment, Rowan shouldered her backpack, calling out, "Later," as she left.

"See ya!" Without much fanfare, (Y/N) joined the current of dispersing students, jostling her way through the crowd like a foreigner in a tour group. Perhaps she would see Jisu on her way to class. Or perhaps not; Jisu was likely already where she was supposed to be.

As it turned out, (Y/N) was wrong. No surprise there. With the minute hand slowly falling towards the position in which it would become a momentary symbol of a school day's beginning, Jisu still did not make an appearance. And it wasn't just her - their teacher, as well as several of the notably intelligent classmates. were absent as well.

Despite the sparsity of the students in the class, (Y/N) had little to concern herself over. A minute or so before the clock rang out the start of the day, a parade of muddled-looking students bobbed into the room, heads shifting next to each other, more heads than the names on the usual roster. Jisu's dyed-caramel locks were spotted amongst the throng.

The teacher, barely visible amongst the influx of newcomers, made herself visible to the class, also visibly flustered, and called the class to attention.

"Class," she called, smoothing her hair back into its ponytail. Patting down her black blazer and straightening an oft-worn black pencil skirt, the teacher tried to compose herself. "Class. Alright, alright. So, I'm sure you're wondering why all these students are here."

There were some jauntily muttered "No's," and some careless shrugs. The teacher, used to the unadulterated angst of high schoolers, continued regardless. "I'm sure you've heard, but a local private school recently closed down. It was, ah... Irvine? Irvine, something or other. Ignore my terrible memory, but regardless, yes. That has put quite the strain on our district."

The news was greeted by a stuffy silence characteristic of bleary mornings and first periods. The teacher, undeterred, decided to continue, likely motivated by the fact that the formerly disorganized mess of students in the front of the classroom had assembled into a vague form.

"Many of the students at Irvine were part of a paid program, which complicated things..." The teacher pursed her lips, trying her best to figure out how to summarize the news. "Ah, well. Basically, because of that program and a few other factors, it would be difficult to have the students attend schools other than several of the ones here, in our district. Is that correct?"

A few unsure nods. Sighing, the teacher motioned for the students clustered at the front of the room to sit, before dropping herself into her chair at her desk. A few of the braver individuals tentatively stepped towards the rest of the classroom, their movements freeing their companions from the social bind that seemed to keep them from dispersing at their free will.

Now that (Y/N) could get a good look at the students, she began to worry. The unfamiliar faces all looked tiredly stolid, the occasional complacent smile wobbling dangerously by the edge of their lips as if held up by delicate strings of sugar. Easily broken, and meaningless, too.

Of course, the teacher was too pressed for the time. As she opened her mouth, the bell rang, and morning announcements flickered to life on the intercom.

"Good morning, East Ridge High!" The tinny voice announced, ringing in an annoying cheerful monotone to the closed ears of the uncaring students. The teacher paused to let the announcements run.

"Today is a special day! Students from the recently closed Irvine Academy have started to filter into our classes. With much hard work on the part of the staff here at East Ridge, the students will be paired up with one former East Ridge resident student! It's their first day, so make sure to give them a proper East Ridge welcome!"

(Y/N) suppressed a snort. A 'welcome' customary of East Ridge would be something like, "Hey. What's up," at the very best. At the worst, it might be nothing at all, or just a rough, "Hey, b***h." That was for the former Irvine students to discover, though. She would do what was necessary, which, considering her barely above-average grades, wouldn't be much. Smart kids were usually the one picked to show new additions around.

As she snapped out of her thoughts, (Y/N) realized announcements were over, and the students who had stood uncomfortably at the front during the entire ordeal were now shuffling into empty spots littering the classroom.

"Jisu!" (Y/N) hissed, catching the warm gaze of her friend. She motioned Jisu over, trying not to look too conspicuous. Compliantly, Jisu immediately directed her pathway towards (Y/N) - with a former attendant of Irvine Academy trailing awkwardly behind her.

"Who's that?" (Y/N) muttered uncomfortably, glancing sporadically at the equally discomforted individual shifting from foot-to-foot behind Jisu.

"Oh, she's a former Irvine student. I was assigned to show her around," Jisu explained proudly, knowing full well that her stellar grades and consistently high performance were the propagators of her selection as a guide.

"Nice... to meet you," (Y/N) tried cautiously, nodding at the girl. Seemingly surprised, the subject of (Y/N)'s greeting nodded back, smiling hesitantly.

"Hello," the girl returned, raising a hand tentatively. (Y/N) smiled a small smile, waiting for the soon-to-follow introduction. After a pause, the former Irvine student added, "My name is Lily."

"Ah, yeah." Jisu smiled as if she hoped to aid Lily in finding a friend already. "(Y/N), Lily. Lily, (Y/N). I bet you'll get along. I definitely hope so, at the very least. It won't be much work, I think, to become friends with each other. You're both great people. As far as I can tell, anyway."

"Of course," (Y/N) joked, feigning some sort of confidence. Seemingly amused, Lily finally sat down, posture still closed off from the rest of them. Jisu rolled her eyes playfully, before proceeding to clasp her hands together in a businesslike manner.

"Anyway," Jisu continued, pulling her backpack onto her lap, "it's time for lessons. Lily, let me go over your schedule with you really fast. This is Chemistry. Considering you went to Irvine, it should be a piece of cake. (Y/N), wanna help? You know where my classes are."

-

 

(Y/N)'s gaze glued itself to the second hand ticking on the clock's face, chanting silently for her first period to end.  _7 minutes, 47 seconds. 46 seconds, 45, 44..._ No longer paying attention to what her teacher was discussing (something about commensalism), (Y/N)'s attentions were completely focused on the steady countdown of the clock hanging on the wall.

 _7 minutes, 34, 33, 32-_ A resounding thud rang out, startling the teacher and class into silence, (Y/N) included. The sound was reminiscent of an obese pidgeon bludgeoning itself against a thick window.

As it turned out, however, the source of the noise was not an obese bird of any sort. The door to the classroom gingerly nudged open to reveal a disheveled boy in a skewed Irvine jacket, hastily dressed but very, very awake. His gaze darted around, flitting frenetically from surprised face to surprised face before finally settling on that of the teacher.

"Ah, teacher," the student blurted out, nodding fervently. He scooted himself further into the classroom before adding, "So very sorry I'm late, teacher. I just, uh... Things happened, teacher. I have my schedule from the office n'everything, but I just, ah, got a bit lost, like."

"Oh, you must be... Ciarán," the teacher greeted, saying his name as "see-ah-ran," to which the presumed Ciarán blinked in amused confusion.

"Eh, well," he mumbled, tilting his head and gaze vaguely downwards. " Ciarán, like  _"kier-ahn,"_  but I've definitely heard worse."

"Oh, yes. Right," the teacher corrected herself, penning down the note in the margin of her roll sheet. " Ciarán. Well, they assigned you a guide, I assume? From the office I mean.  _I swear, if they messed this one up, too..._ "

"A guide? What?" The innocuous question drew a suppressed sigh from the distraught teacher, who shook her head and let out her bated breath in a long, tired exhale. With a pasted-on smile, she carefully plucked Ciarán's schedule from his waiting hands, scanning it thoughtfully.

"Alright, Ciarán," the teacher exhaled, thudding her palms down flat on her desk with little regard for the schedule paper scrunching up beneath her right hand. "Please take an empty seat. I'll... I'll sort this out by the end of class, so don't you worry! We'll... We'll get this figured out."

"Teacher, the end of class is in about five minutes," Ciarán reminded her helpfully, only serving to distress the stressed out teacher even further.

"Okay, okay... We'll just..." The teacher scanned the room, her gaze finally catching on Jisu, (Y/N), and Lily. "Ah. Jisu? Yes, Jisu. Would it be alright if we had you help our new addition with his first two classes? Then you can pass him off to someone who has the next classes with him, and so on, and so forth! Would you be alright with that, Jisu?"

"O-Oh, uh," Jisu, startled from her conversation with Lily, had very little idea about whatever was going on. "Sure...?"

(Y/N)'s head snapped towards her in vaguely alarmed confusion. Jisu shrugged in equally disconcerted uncertainty, staring back at (Y/N) with a doubtful look on her face. Lily, who vaguely recalled the intrusively late boy as a former schoolmate, exchanged glances with the two other girls as Judy tried to figure out what she'd agreed to.

"Thank you so much, Jisu." The teacher returned the schedule to Ciarán and ushered him towards the group of three girls without much difficulty. Sighing in relief, the teacher announced, "Alright, you all may clean up. We're still sorting out the whole Irvine closing thing, so I hope you all can bear with me."

Jisu, finally allowed to turn to the others for answers, spun her gaze towards (Y/N) to ask, "What exactly did I agree to? I have no idea what just happened."

"Hi," Ciarán interjected cheerfully, setting himself down in the empty chair next to Lily. He smiled radiantly, squishing his formerly round eyes into crescents. "You're Jisu?"

"Uh, yeah," Jisu confirmed, confused. Having not yet been answered by (Y/N), she decided to pose a question to the boy sitting across from her. "And you're...?"

"Ciarán," the boy finished. Gaze flicking from Jisu to (Y/N) to Lily, the boy didn't say anything more.

"...Oh," Jisu contributed. She promptly looked back to (Y/N) for the answers she assumed Ciarán probably wouldn't supply. Across the table, Lily silently scrutinized the vaguely recognizable boy, trying to place him.

"You get to be Ciarán's guide, too," (Y/N) clarified, kissing her teeth sympathetically as Jisu's face washed itself of color.

"Wait, but I have Lily-"

"And me, too, now," Ciarán interjected with an empathetic smile gracing his face. Lily looked on in a similar humor, although in a less verbally indicative manner.

"Don't worry, you can pass him off to someone later," (Y/N) elaborated, patting Jisu on the shoulder. "It's just because you two share this and the next class. Just hand him to someone who shares his third period with him and pass on the info."

"Don't worry, I'm a good kid," Ciarán assured Jisu, smiling without an ounce of ill intent. Lily suddenly coughed, drawing the suspicions of the group to the innocuous boy positioned adjacently to Lily.

"What?" Ciarán protested, his pretty features scrunching in faux offense. Lily shook her head, eyebrows raised.

"Nothing...?" Lily responded, much to the skepticism of her peers. Ciarán cocked his head and left eyebrow simultaneously, lips still pursed. Lily shrugged her shoulders and puffed out a breath of air. "I mean - aren't you relatively close friends with that one blond that used to get suspended monthly?"

"Not monthly," Ciarán deflected, puffing his cheeks in silent protest. (Y/N) exchanged furtive glances with Jisu, who bared her teeth in a staged grimaced. Before any further exchanges, the bell finally rang. Jisu shot up, slung her backpack onto her arm, and gingerly began herding Ciarán and Lily towards the door.

Shaking her head with an amused humor, (Y/N) followed suit and revved up her patience for her next class.

-

 

A welcome break from her draining morning classrooms, homeroom approached from where it had been lurking on the horizon. Homeroom was one of two times that (Y/N) had a class with Teo during a school day, if you could call homeroom a class, that is.

Incidentally, homeroom had been the deciding factor in the elevation of Teo's status from "acquaintance, only really ever known as 'Ashli's friend,'" to that fitting of a good friend. Initially, Ashli honestly hadn't expected Teo and (Y/N) to get along, which, really, only fueled (Y/N)'s determination to prove him wrong.

Friendship. After two-and-a-half years, manners really don't come into play anymore. 

(Y/N) was pulled out of her reflections as her name was called. With a turn of her head, (Y/N) was able to spot Teo bobbing through the crowd. It seemed there were two additional heads weaving through the throng after Teo.

"Teo," (Y/N) greeted, relatively monotonously. Picking up on this lack of enthusiasm, Teo frowned down at (Y/N). While he was definitely not the tallest of guys, he was still a bit taller than (Y/N). As Teo tended to be relatively self-conscious about his not-exactly impressive stance, he made sure to comfort himself by measuring up past his shorter friends (namely Mio, (Y/N), and Jisu. Even Rowan was taller than he).

"What's with the frown, short stack?" Teo smoothly executed the clunky nickname he'd labeled all three of the shorter girls with. Mio, (Y/N), and Jisu. Short stack club. 

"What's with the two tagalongs, Sir Insecure?" (Y/N) closed her question with her customary nickname for her admittedly height-fixated friend. Genuinely curious, (Y/N) considered the two silent spectators behind her friend. 

A tall, serious-looking boy with East Asian features occasionally glanced up from the small phone in his hands, walking next to, but not in direct relation to, the girl briskly pacing forward beside him.

"Uh. The guy is Linjun. He's Chinese, I think. And that's Alison. She's Burmese," Teo introduced. He frowned, glasses inching down his nose. "Not that that's particularly important. It was part of an introductory exercise in our first-period class. I have to pass them off, though, or I'm going to screw something up. I can feel it in my bones."

"Your bones. The most reliable forecaster of future events, of course," (Y/N) remarked, not really bothering to disguise the vague sarcasm that flavored the words slipping through her lips. They had just about reached their destination, the door swinging about only a few meters away. 

"Nah, I just don't share the next class with Linjun. And," Teo continued, lowering his voice to divulge more information, "Alison just doesn't like me."

"What's there to like?" (Y/N) snorted as Teo gaped in exaggerated anguish, his palms slamming to his chest as if magnetized in a way specifically designed to perform a show of agony. (Y/N) rolled her eyes at his emphasized display of distress.

"How could you be so cruel?" Teo wondered humorously, the last of the four adolescents slipped into homeroom. His gaze flickered anxiously towards his two charges. "But, in all seriousness, I need to find someone who has drama next period. Who even takes drama? I'm actually screaming."

Surprised, (Y/N) glanced over. (Teo was not, in fact, screaming.) She haphazardly mentioned, "I have Drama 2, but I don't think-"

"Thank you, Linjun is your responsibility now," Teo announced, looking as if he were only half joking. He sighed, having reached his seat in a position adjacent to (Y/N). Linjun and Alison had made ther way over to the teacher for instruction, so Teo did not feel the need to put up verbal restrictions. "But seriously,  (Y/N). If I can't find anyone else, you're actually my only option."

"Yeah, but..." Finding no good reason to protest, (Y/N) submitted. She questioned the turn of events, but only let out a sigh and a question. "Am I taking Alison, too?"

"Nah, we're good," Teo assured his resigned-looking friend. He elbowed her meaningfully. "Good news is good, my dude. Drop the long face."

"I don't want to have to-" (Y/N)'s protests were cut off by Teo's hand jabbing her side. Flinching away, (Y/N) turned to glare at her friend, who shrugged innocuously, taking the guise of innocence.

"Please?" Teo pleaded, trying his hardest to think of a bargain. Brightening, he offered, "I'll give you half an Oreo. Like, the nice side."

"Agh, bribery?" (Y/N) groaned, unable to resist the offer of food. Twisting in her seat to stare Teo directly in the face, she bargained, "The whole Oreo."

"You drive a hard bargain, woman," Teo relented. He stuck out his hand. "But it's a deal. Linjun is now yours to guide. At least for the next period. Then shove him off to someone else. Mio, maybe Jisu, if you can fin her. He knows his classes already, so don't worry."

"Damn, already? It took me like half a month to memorize my schedule," (Y/N) remarked as the bell rang. Linjun and Alison made their way towards their prospective guide, Teo, choosing to sit just behind him and (Y/N). 

"Yes, hi," Teo greeted hastily, assuming some sort of businesslike persona. He fixed his gaze towards a relatively unimpressed Linjun, who blinked curiously at the boy. Alison had taken out her phone and was paying them no mind.

"Linjun, I don't have my next class with you," Teo began to explain, nodding for emphasis. Alison eyed Linjun really quickly before returning her gaze to her phone.

"So you're passing me off," finished Linjun in an accurate guess. At Teo's nod of confirmation, Linjun's lips moved into a gentle smile. His voice was calmly soft and middling in range, but not to the point where it wasn't memorable. It was rather reminiscent of the texture of sun-gilded cotton and sounded rather mature. Linjun nodded thoughtfully, curious. "Have you worked out who my next guide will be?"

"This girl, (Y/N)," Teo answered gratefully. He gestured to the girl, who smiled awkwardly. Linjun's mouth twitched into an equally awkward smile. Teo surveyed the situation, pleased with the turnout. "Yeah. So, Linjun, (Y/N). (Y/N), Linjun."

"Hey," Linjun offered, still wearing his awkwardly complacent smile. He tilted his head and motioned in a quick wave. His dark brown hair swept into his eyes, prompting him to brush the soft locks away and straighten his posture. He blinked hard, trying to dislodge a few stubborn strands irritating his coffee-colored eyes.

"Nice to meet you," (Y/N) offered in return, smiling in genuine amusement at his predicament. Surprisingly, Linjun returned the genuine gesture, his smile spreading to squish his eyes into chocolate crescents. Then he turned back to the phone laying on his desk. Anticlimactic, to say the least.

"He's pretty friendly, so don't worry about him," Teo assured (Y/N) quietly.

"I like to think so," interjected Linjun softly, letting out a quiet laugh. He shrugged calmly. "I can hear you, Teo."

"O-Oh, uh, I wasn't going to say anything bad," Teo quickly assured him, eyebrows raised in a strange expression of sincerity. Linjun snorted in amusement, raising his eyebrows slightly in fitting response. 

"Linjun," Alison interceded, peering at her phone. "What's your next period? Am I still stuck with Teo, or do I get to go with this chick?"

"Ah, I think drama 2," Linjun answered truthfully, pursing his lips. Alison sighed in vague disappointment.  

"No need to sound so disappointed," Teo protested, even as (Y/N) teasingly muttered, "Boy, do I feel you." 

Exaggerating his offense, Teo turned to (Y/N) in protest, even as Alison barked out an amused laugh. She grinned at (Y/N), remorsefully replying, "Would've picked ya if I could've, my girl."

Linjun seemed amused by the passing events, but it was hard to tell with his curtain of straight hair obscuring his expression as he hunched over his phone.

The rest of homeroom passed uneventfully, (Y/N) only just remembering that she had an important test the next day and, for once, choosing to prepare instead of promising to do it later, tomorrow, then next period, then during lunch, and finally, oh-sh*t-the-test-is-now.

As the bell rang, (Y/N) shoved her textbook into her backpack and slung it over her shoulder, readying herself for the quickly paced walk she'd have to execute if she were to make it to her next class on time. Whoever arranged these schedules seemed to love sending her across the campus and back about five times a day.

(Y/N) hastily wound her way towards the door, but was halted nearly immediately by a two-person chorus of "(Y/N), wait!"

Whipping her head around, (Y/N) suddenly remembered her charge. His name was... Linjun. Yeah. The tall boy was trying his best to awkwardly navigate around the desks to make his way to her. 

"Hurry up," Alison prodded, already at the door. Teo groaned,  still trying to work his way through the maze of desks. The two boys were taller than both (Y/N) and Alison and had quite the time trying to guide their longer legs around the faux-wood roadblocks in their path.

Finally, the two boys reached the door, and the two pairs split off towards their respective classes. 

As (Y/N) began walking at an even quicker pace, insisting to herself she had to be on time, she noticed Linjun casually keeping a moderate tempo beside her. She mentally cursed his long legs, glaring angrily at the hallway in front of her and raking a hand through her hair.

"Are you, uh... okay?" Linjun hesitantly put forward, apparently having observed her vague frustration. She shot him a quick look before sighing, only increasing her rapid pace.

"No, yeah, I'm fine," she answered, tsking in the back of her mouth. "Being short is just really annoying when your next class is on the other side of the goddamn campus. Though I suspect you've don't really have that problem, ha..."

"No," he agreed softly,  still walking at a relatively leisurely pace. He huffed out a laugh quietly, amused by her strange disposition. He looked forward to see a flamboyantly marked doorway in front of him and (Y/N). 

"This is the drama room," (Y/N) introduced, waving grandiosely at the door. She snickered, dragging Linjun's interest. "Mr. Cheng calls the door 'Addie." And Mrs. Adams calls Mr. Cheng 'crazy.'"

"Oh...," was Linjun's only reply. Unsure how to proceed with the conversation, he simply smiled in a vaguely matronly fashion before reaching over to keep the door open as (Y/N) walked in.

"Thanks," she offered in response to the gesture. (Y/N) heard the door close as Linjun followed her into the three-quarters-full classroom.

Perhaps this would be an interesting rest of the year.


	2. Convenience Store

** October 10, Wednesday **

Teo hadn't been wrong; Linjun proved to be absolutely no trouble whatsoever, though probably not for whatever reason Teo had used to justify his words. It turned out that one of his buddies was also in the class.

His friend, a brunet by the name of Sil-something-or-other, had greeted him nearly immediately upon arrival and yanked him off to talk. (Y/N)'s job, now, it seemed, was to simply find some other kid to pass Linjun off to. She had yet to ask him what his fourth period was, but figured that the opportunity would come in due time.

Because the drama teacher liked to host the class in the school theatre, free seating was usually allowed. Even so, the students had, even this early in the year, already settled into their respective cliques, and would choose to sit with their designated friends.

As Linjun and (Y/N) parted ways, Mio bounced her way over and tugged (Y/N) to their usual places in the lower seating tier of the high school theatre.

"So, who is  _he_?" Mio asked, snickering cheerfully to herself. She peered suspiciously at Linjun and his friend with the ashy brown hair. (Y/N) instinctively followed Mio's gaze, dolefully reminding herself to quickly find a new guide for her charge. She couldn't help but feel slightly jealous as she observed Linjun's beautifully soft-looking hair, its color so brown it flirted with the tone of black licorice.

"Huh? Oh, Teo dropped him off with me. He's like that kid Cia- No, wait, that was with Jisu. Well, ah... Basically, he's being passed from kid to kid because he's new and needs to be shown where his classes are," (Y/N) explained affably, smiling casually. Mio nodded seriously, pursing her lips in contemplation.

"He's cute," Mio observed mischievously, nudging (Y/N) with her elbow. (Y/N) fondly rolled her eyes at Mio, chalking this most recent development up to her closest friend's eagle-eye for cute classmates. Mio suggested, "Maybe you and him could hit it off? Or maybe Teo...?"

(Y/N) chortled at the idea, shaking her head. She nullified Mio's words with her own, saying, "Teo's as straight as a ruler. And I don't have time for dating, m'girl. You think Ashli might go for Linjun?"

"Ooh, wait." A curious gleam lit Mio's mocha-toned eyes, even as (Y/N) snorted in amusement, her spine thumping against the backrest of the theatre seat with the force of her own hilarity. Mio raised her eyebrows at this display, tilting her chin downwards sharply and noting, "You're not that funny. But I don't know if I wanna give this boy up to Ashli. He's cute. What's his name?"

"Damn, Mio. Giving up the single life so fast?" (Y/N) clicked her tongue in fabricated disapproval. "Anyway, I'm pretty sure his name is Linjun. I'm also pretty sure I'm pronouncing it wrong."

"Mm, probably," Mio agreed, nodding in agreement. She snuck another glance at the pair, still obliviously chatting. Before she could say any more, the bell rang. As if dictated by a magnet, Mio's gaze attached itself to the two adults making themselves known from the door at the right side of the modest theatre.

"Hello, hello," Mr. Cheng announced in greeting, splaying his arms out and nearly hitting the other figure in the face. The other figure belonged to the other teacher, Ms. Adams, who seemed a considerably more composed educator than the outgoing Mr. Cheng.

The racket in the resonant room died off as the two teachers made their way to the center of the spacious building. Mio looked relatively interested in the forthcoming events. She was sincerely invested in the class, whereas (Y/N) had chosen the course more because of the predicted easy A.

"As you have possibly noticed, we have new classmates," Mr. Cheng announced, striding in front of the scattered students. He was still so young he could have passed for a college student, so he barely looked out of place in the classroom. Ms. Adams, who was trying to find the attendance sheet in the pile of documents in her arms, was a similar age but held a gentle composure that positively reeked of responsibility.

The few who had not noticed the new students whipped their gaze around (there were more new faces than just Linjun and his friend, so those who hadn't noticed posed an oblivious minority).

"Let's introduce them," Ms. Adams suggested, finally locating the targeted sheet, smoothing it out against the rest of the papers. She wore a grave look on her face, possibly imagining the consequences of hosting such a large class. She scanned the list, ticking off the names she recognized.

"Who's new?" Mr. Cheng queried, peering curiously down at the list resting against Ms. Adams's forearm. He scanned the list for new names before straightening his spine and raising his gaze. "Alrighty. So, it seems we have eight additions! Wow. Ah, let's see..."

"Yes," Ms. Adams confirmed, blue-green eyes blinking owlishly at the list. She continued, "The students are all from Irvine, as you know. There are eight of them joining our class. When I call your name, please raise your hand. If I do not call your name, please tell me. Vivian?"

A short girl sitting not too far from Mio and (Y/N) promptly raised her hand, not looking up from the assignment in her lap.

"Silvano?"

Linjun's friend with the ashy brown hair slipped his hand into the air, exuding a comfortable air.

"Linjun?"

Linjun's hand lifted as Silvano's dropped, and he exchanged a small grin with his friend.

"Nathaniel?"

A boy sitting a few seats away from Linjun lifted his hand with a disheartened air.

"Connor?"

A boy wearing a thick jacket allowed his hand to meander upwards.

"Jae-eun?"

A girl with long hair raised her hand tentatively from the upper tier of seats.

"Coral?"

A girl with short hair promptly raised her hand.

"Zachary?"

A small boy sitting in the very back raised his hand.

"That's everyone," Mr. Cheng finished for Ms. Adams. She smiled in conjunction with the other teacher before concluding, "Alright. Make sure your new peers feel at home. Try not to ostracise them."

"Be friendly," Mr. Cheng advised, trying to word his counterpart's words more positively. He clasped his hands together, closed his eyes, and assumed a more business-like persona. "Alright. To explain to the new students here, we've been preparing for a small stage play, just for this class. We won't be performing for the school or for parents, for the less-socially-adept of you all, but this will be graded!

"Due to the original sparsity of the class, we didn't have enough people to divide between two performances. With the new additions, however, we can split the assignment between two groups. Each group will perform the same sketch, with the same lines, and for a grade. The scene is open to interpretation, so it'll be up to you to form the scene.

"You'll receive a group grade, in addition to an individual one. We haven't gone through too much of the assignment, so it won't be too much to catch up. We'll divide you all into groups. Let's count off. One, two, one, two..."

Mr. Cheng finished his monologue and began to count off the students, pointing his fingers at students, left to right, from top row down.

Seeing this development, Linjun hastily switched seats with the boy next to him in an effort to ensure he and Silvano were in the same group. (Y/N) and Mio exchanged glances before (Y/N) ushered Mio to switch seats with the boy next to her.

As it ended up, the arrangement worked out.

"Now, separate into your individual groups and begin working on your lines. Fabricate a scene that works with the ambiguous lines given and divide the roles between you all. If you're confused, ask a classmate before asking us, alright?" Ms. Adams instructed, keeping a neutral expression on her face.

Mio and (Y/N) had been sorted into Group A, and so they made their way over to their respective groupmates. It was lucky that they had a group with several of the better actors in the class.

"Hey," Sera greeted. She was a freshman, a few younger than Mio and (Y/N), but was definitely far more experienced in the theater scene. She looked just as old as her older classmates and could act many times better. She had her crumpled copy of the script in her hands. "So... I guess we're reassigning parts? Fun."

"Probably," Mio agreed, looking over Sera's shoulders to analyze the list of characters. She scanned the group of students. "Well, this works out perfectly. The eight new students just manage to round out this group. The other group is one short."

"Ah, yeah. It's good that it's so open to interpretation," Sera observed, pursing her lips in thought. She looked up at the rest of the group. Most had begun talking to their friends in the group. Several were just standing around cluelessly.

Suddenly, an anxious voice asked, "Shouldn't we do something?"

(Y/N) flinched before turning to see Linjun looking questioningly at her. His friend, too, peered down at (Y/N) and, in turn, Mio.

"Oh, ah, probably?" (Y/N) managed a sheepish grin, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She laughed awkwardly, shrugging her shoulders. Suddenly realising she was still Linjun's guide, (Y/N) quickly composed herself enough to ask, "Is there anything I can clarify for you, or...?"

"Oh! No, no, it's alright," Linjun assured her, smiling at the thoughtful gesture. How considerate of the girl, really. He glanced over at Sera, who was trying to gather the attentions of the students scattered throughout the area. "Should we... help her?"

"Huh? Yeah, you're probably right," (Y/N) confirmed, turning to see what Sera needed. Linjun stared thoughtlessly in (Y/N)'s vague as she careened towards Sera to attempt to assist. Seeing this, Silvano teasingly elbowed his friend.

"That cute, huh?" Silvano joked, nudging Linjun. "

"What? Oh, no, just staring off into space. And, well, I'm not saying anything. Are you implying I judge by appearance?" Linjun queried, raising his eyebrows. He smiled good-naturedly and shook his head in vague dissent, sticking out a finger to gently poke Silvano's cheek. "Now, that's not morally sound."

"No, mother," Silvano parroted, slumping in an exaggerated fashion. Laughing at his own joke, Silvano quickly straightened, unable to help himself from scrutinizing the (h/c)-haired girl standing a short distance away.

By now, Sera seemed to have gathered everyone in a circle. Seeing this, Linjun gently tugged Silvano towards the group coagulating in the wide aisle between the upper and lower tiers of seats in the modest theatre.

"Alright, so... We should probably assign roles," Sera suggested, rifling through her wrinkled script. "Uh, was it... Jae-eun? Yeah! Hi! You and those two guys are new, right? Fun! Don't worry, we haven't really started yet, so you guys have nothing to catch up on. Uh..."

"Roles," prompted Mio, with her arm linked in (Y/N)'s.

"Yep," agreed Sera, smiling gently. She glanced over at Linjun and Silvano before continuing. "I, uh... Roles. Right. Fun. Who wants to do what? I'll write it down."

-

A short while later, roles had all been assigned. (Y/N), like most of the group, had opted for a shorter part. More devoted actors like Sera had, of course, chosen characters with lengthier lines, though the longer segments would prove more difficult to work with. Much of the text was banal at best, and so it was up to the students to make something from the familiar lines.

"Do I really have to make something out of this?" (Y/N) mumbled to Mio, scanning her short part in vague disappointment. She and Mio had taken to two seats. "But I'm so lazy..."

"You'll be doing that with two others, though," Mio consoled, planting her forehead onto (Y/N)'s left shoulder. "Mine's basically a monologue."

"It's very short, though," (Y/N) pointed out, reclining a little in her theatre seat. She half-heartedly read through her short part, sighing as she realised that she would need to locate the physical counterparts of the other characters in the segment.

Mio, by now, had excused herself to ask another classmate from Group B about her lines. (Y/N) flipped the stapled papers to the front paper, sighing quietly to herself and standing from her seat.

Seeing Sera wander past, (Y/N) finally mustered the energy to ask, "Hey, Sera. Do you know who else is in Section Three with me?"

Essentially, the script was divided into several ambiguous sections, each of which had anywhere from one to five members. (Y/N) had the luck to have landed a relatively small part as Person B in Section Three.

"What coincidence strikes! I'm Person A, you? Person B, I'm guessing," Sera hazarded, gesturing to the script in (Y/N)'s hands. "Section Three is pretty short, so hey - at least we won't be  doing too much planning."

(Y/N) nodded, surprised. "So... It's only Person C left," (Y/N) concluded, twisting her mouth to the side. Throwing responsibility to the wind, (Y/N) shrugged. "We'll deal with that later. After all, the first half of this segment is just us, right? And, besides, I'm not up for a hunt."

"Same," Sera agreed sincerely. "I guess our Person C is staying anonymous. Fun."

"Excuse me," a soft voice interjected in seemingly good humor. (Y/N) flinched, turning her torso to better identify the source of the spook.

"Oh! Linjun. My dude, you need to calm down with the surprise guest appearances. No offense, but you're going to scare me to death," chastised (Y/N), seeing that it was Linjun behind her, accompanied by his friend.

"Ah, yeah, sorry," Linjun apologized, sheepishly maintaining what seemed to be his perpetual smile. He scratched the back of his neck and adjusted the collar of his shirt, awkwardly pondering the unintentional fright he had caused. Feeling slightly guilty for her chiding comment, (Y/N) quickly dismissed his apology with a shake of her head.

Remembering what he'd come to bring up, Linjun tried to get the conversation back on track. "Oh, right. (Y/N), Sera. The reason I, ah, made my interjection was that I overheard you two talking about Section Three of the script."

"Yeah, what about it?" Sera asked, staring inquisitively at Linjun's pretty features. She tilted her head in hopeful suspicion, narrowing her umber eyes. "Are you Person C?"

"What? Oh, no. Rather... It's my friend, here, Silvano," Linjun clarified, smiling gently at (Y/N)'s younger friend. Linjun gestured to the shorter brunet situated in a position just adjacent to his own. "He's Person C. Do you know who Person A or B is?"

"Coincidentally, it's me and (Y/N)," Sera answered promptly, gesturing to herself and her friend. She unconsciously scuffed her sneakers against the nubbly blue carpet of the theatre aisle. "It's too bad you're not working with us also."

"Wh- Aw, I'm hurt!" Silvano finally spoke, seeming to vocalise his thoughts only to fake emotional trauma. Clutching at his chest, Silvano queried, "I'm not good enough, friend?"

"Silvano, was it? Ah, your heart is on your left side," (Y/N) corrected with an amused laugh, gently patting the left side of her chest in correspondence to her words.

"Ah. Whoops," Silvano muttered, dropping his hands entirely. Linjun laughed, glancing from his friend to his third-period guide. Silvano shrugged, stepping forward and extending a hand. "Anyway... I'm Silvano. Resident filler friend and drama fiend extraordinaire! Nice to meet you."

"Filler... friend?" (Y/N) questioned, raising a single eyebrow, swallowing her amused laughter. She shook his proffered hand with a small smile. "Mood. It's nice to meet you, 'drama kid extraordinaire.'"

"Linjun, your guide is nice," Silvano announced, a playful grin on his face. He grabbed Linjun's hand and inquired, "Are you friends yet? When can I third-wheel the friendship?"

(Y/N) didn't even hear the rest of what was being said. As Sera joined the conversation, all she could think of was how Silvano had pronounced Linjun's name. She paused, rethinking her next move.

"Ah, hey, um... Linjun?" (Y/N) hesitantly interjected. Linjun stopped midsentence and turned his face towards the unsure girl. She grimaced, screaming inwardly in projected embarrassment, and asked, "Do I... Am I pronouncing your name right?"

"No," Silvano answered, shaking his head with a serious look emblazoned into his hazel eyes. "It's pronounced 'Kevin.'"

Rolling his eyes at Silvano's joke, Linjun shook his own head in reciprocation to his friend's words. "It's alright. Don't worry about it. I have an English name, but it's just really awkward. So I don't-"

"It's 'Wimbleton.' His English name is Dingleberry Wimbleton," Silvano muttered, emulating a straight face.

"Silvano. Zip those lips and gimme the key," Linjun ordered, forcefully ruffling his friend's tawny hair. Silvano made a mouth-zipper motion and screwed his lips into a pout. "Aha, anyway... You're saying it fine."

"You sure?" (Y/N) asked, pressing her lips together in vague skepticism.

"I mean, she's making a good point," Sera observed, alternating her gaze between the people around her. Linjun, sensing their hesitance concerning the pronunciation of his name, furrowed his brows in thought.

"Some of my friends like to use nicknames," Linjun offered, blinking his almond-shaped eyes in thought. "If it helps at all, a nickname is okay. Just 'Jun' is okay if that's easier."

"Call him LJ," Silvano suggested mischievously, giggling to himself. "Take an L. L. Ellie. Oh my god. Call him Ellie."

"Silvano!" Linjun yanked Silvano's hood over his face and pulled the hoodie strings taut. Even Linjun's motherly nature had a limit, it seemed. "Ah, um... Don't... don't listen to him. Just Jun is fine.  Linjun is fine, too. I swear I don't care how you pronounce it, as long as it's recognizably my name."

"A nickname...? I think I'll stick to your full name," Sera decided, quickly moving on from the issue. Eliciting little more than a quiet agreement from Linjun, Sera hesitantly turned towards Silvano (who had freed himself from his cloth constraints) to ensure he was well-informed about the part.

"Mm... I guess I'll use them interchangeably," (Y/N) concluded after a spell. "Nice, Jun."

"Of course," Linjun agreed, wondering why his guide chose to worry herself over such an inconsequential issue. "You really don't need to worry about it, (Y/N). I really don't mind, you know. It really is kind, but it's unnecessary, I promise."

"It's just common respect," (Y/N) responded, drawing the end of the sentence up in a question. She blinked quizzically at Linjun, gaze serious and lips twisted in silent query. "It... It doesn't bother you, right? Oh, damn. Am I being irritating?"

"What? No! No, not at all," Linjun hastened to reassure her, eyes widening in haste. "It's not annoying at all, really. Seriously, I-"

"Uwa, (Y/N)? Mm... Earth to Person B? Person B, Person B..." Silvano's singsong voice broke through the apology, sunnily introducing the cute boy it belonged to. "(Y/N)..."

"Oh! Coming in, Person C, Person A," (Y/N) responded in mock seriousness, choosing to play along. She shot an apologetic glance at Linjun, who smiled gently at his friend and guide as they conversed. It was nice to see them get along. He discreetly waved goodbye to the three characters in Section Three and departed to find his own group.

"So we wanted to try figuring out a good scene for the lines," Sera explained, glancing at Linjun's retreating back. "So, because it seems like Person C and Person A are both trying to convince Person B of something, I was thinking, like... They're salesmen trying to convince Person B...?"

"Yes, and?" Silvano prompted, corners of his mouth twitching. For reasons unbeknownst to (Y/N), Sera found that phrase particularly amusing. Silvano, also in a good humor, dismissed his joke quickly. "Kidding. Anyhow, we can try that. What other ideas do you have?"

As it ended up, Sera and Silvano managed to contribute several times as many ideas as (Y/N), who had participated once. Silvano twiddled with the strands of his egg-blue hoodie, leaning back in his seat. He, (Y/N), and Sera were trying to decide on a final idea.

"So, final idea, friend?" Silvano queried, clapping a slender hand over his half-closed hazel eyes. Exuding an air of fanciful exhaustion, Silvano was the spitting image of an early bird on the night shift. Perhaps his neighborly cheer was a quickly depleted resource.

"Shouldn't we run it by the sections on either side to make sure our ideas are in a similar setting, at least?" Sera, in perfect contrast the boy wearily reclining in the seat between herself and (Y/N), seemed thoughtfully fresh and full of energy.

(Y/N) quickly voiced her agreement, but Silvano remained curiously silent. Silvano's neighborly nature did not condone the abnormally suspended state he seemed to have indulged in. (Y/N) added, "I think Silvano isn't coming."

"Ah? Alright, then. Off we go, I guess," Sera acquitted, watching as (Y/N) made her way to the end of the uniform row of navy-cushioned seats. Without much fanfare, the two of them departed on their search for their classmate. Silvano didn't really notice, as his motionless eyelids obscured his hazel gaze. (He'd fallen asleep.)

It wasn't long before Sera located her target friend. Darcy was a short, nondescript boy with brown hair in Group A's Section Two. His small frame did very little in terms of helping him stand out. That job went to his personality.

"Sera! Hi! Oh, (Y/N)'s with you! Cool! Is there something you need?" Darcy energetically greeted the two as soon as he saw them approaching, smiling brightly. "You guys are part of Section Three, if memory serves correctly. With one of the Irvine kids, right?"

"Yeah. He's the cheerful neighborly boy who's friends with that Asian guy," Sera confirmed, nodding. "Anyway, where's your scene set? We wanna make sure everything's coherent."

"Ah, um... We have yet to confer with the Mio. She  _is_  Section One," Darcy explained candidly, instinctively peering around the theatre in search of the aforementioned girl. His diminutive stature contributed nothing to his search and, perhaps, did the opposite, creating for him a line of sight too easily obstructed by any other classmates of larger builds. Darcy suggested, "If we coordinate with you guys, then maybe (Y/N) can go convince Mio to play along. You guys are, like, best friends, right?"

"Essentially," (Y/N) confirmed, smiling fondly at the thought of her close friend. Nodding in a vaguely subtle motion to convey her agreement, the (h/c)-haired girl quickly judged the idea to be of a sound nature. "But sure. What happens in Section Two, again?"

"Don't worry, I got this," Sera assured (Y/N), assuming a businesslike air. She quickly wrapped her right arm around the older girl in a half-hug, before insisting, "Go find Mio. If you can get her over here, then we can work it all out together!"

Before anything much could happen, however, the clamoring peals of the loud school bell triggered a mass gravitation of students towards their backpacks. Neither able nor willing to escape that pull, Sera, (Y/N), and Darcy alike beelined for their backpacks.

Silvano, understandably disoriented, awoke, trying to figure out where he was and what the vivacious movements of the students meant.

"Linjun! Oh my goodness, I'm so, so sorry," (Y/N) blurted, upon finally locating the vaguely confused male. "Quickly! What's your next period?"

"Ah?" Linjun looked down at the frantic girl, guiltily amused by her concerned panic. "It's English in Room 17. If you... I mean, I can probably find it. I... take a left, right? From the theatre exit? And then just, ah..."

"Not even close," (Y/N) revealed, thoughts veering and whirring like intoxicated wasps in a bottle. Lips pressed firmly against each other and brow furrowed, the alarming fluidity of the passing time forced (Y/N) to hurriedly construct a compromise. "Jun, I'm so sorry. I, ah... I guess I could try and show you if we hurry. My next class is a bit far, though, so we have to hurry."

Silvano chose that moment to make an appearance. "Linjun, my boy. Ellie, my dude," he greeted, tuning his voice with a playful inflection. Somehow, despite having had fallen asleep, his bright burnt-basil eyes remained untouched by the disheveling influence of sleep, as did his hair. "What's up? Where to now?"

"We're... Trying to figure it out," Linjun answered awkwardly, eyes darting towards the shorter girl who had been named his guide. "I need to find Room 17, but I, uh..."

"Hey! I'm nearby. Let's go together, Junnie and guide," Silvano suggested. "Let's hurry."

Without saying a word, (Y/N) impatiently tugged at either of their opposing elbows before releasing their joints and rushing out of the room. As their gazes trailed the departing girl, their conscious minds finally jolted them into discernable action and threw them onto her path after her.

-

School ended without further incident. Soon after exchanging parting words with both her original charge and his cheerful friend, (Y/N)'s day resumed what normality Irvine's unforeseen closing had left untouched. As per usual, (Y/N) and her small group of friends decided, after quickly conferring and confirming their opinions, to head to their local convenience store to grab a few (relatively unhealthy) snacks and just hang out.

"Again, sorry about dumping Linjun with you," Teo apologized, acting as navigator to the same group of five from earlier that day. Ashli still hadn't made his appearance, though he'd promised Teo to grace them with his presence tomorrow. He yanked his zipper upwards, sinking deeper into his stylishly blue windbreaker as the playfully chilly breeze bit at his skin.

"Nah, he was no trouble," (Y/N) dismissed with a smile, pulling a strand of (h/c) hair away from her face. The formerly light breeze had begun to act up, and it now posed a much larger problem than it had previously. "Ju- Linjun's a good kid. Mother vibes."

"He's pretty cute, too," Mio reminisced cheerfully, poking her pointer finger at the air next to (Y/N)'s face. Jisu and Rowan, who were walking in a row between Teo and the two other girls, simultaneously glanced back at Mio.

"Irvine kids seem to be annoyingly attractive," Jisu remarked, lowering her eyebrows. Giving up the neatness of her hair to the chaos of the wind, Jisu sighed and lowered her hands from her scalp. "Ciarán from chem was pretty cute, too..."

"Who?" Mio demanded, lasering her dark-eyed focus to consume Jisu in her entirety. "Who's Ciarán? How cute is he?"

"Well, well, well. Is this not the same Mio that had, at an earlier time, claimed to enjoy the single life?" teased Teo, adjusting his glasses on his face. Rowan couldn't suppress the really loud "Ha!" that escaped her at the revelation. Jisu hid a grin with her sleeve.

"Well, but... Hey, look, here we are!" Mio parried, red-faced. She grabbed (Y/N) by the hand and sprinted past Teo and Jisu. She gestured at the storefront situated in front of them. "Are you guys just gonna buy the usual stuff? If so, I can go ahead and grab it for you."

"Nah, bro," Teo responded cheerfully. "I'll grab something new today."

"Same," Jisu contributed, shaking her head to refute Mio's offer.

"Nope, I'm set," Rowan dismissed in good humour, gangly arms folded. The wind rake through her short,  songbird-brown curls."Go ahead."

Mio smiled, voiced her consent, and dragged (Y/N) into the store. "Alright, (Y/N). Go grab whatever. I pay on Wednesdays, so hurry before I ditch, haha!"

"Yep." (Y/N) made the familiar turn into the drinks aisle. Spotting her desired beverage, she felt a queer combination of panicky adrenaline and weak relief at the sight of the single can of milk tea sitting in the refridgerated drinks case.

(Y/N) increased her pace as she strode over. She yanked open the door, ignoring the several other patrons milling around nearby. She reached out a hand to gently wrap her fingers around-

Someone else's hand.

"Hey!" (Y/N) blurted instinctively, looking up at the perpetrator. Her own eyes were locked into the sharp, silvery gaze of the unanticipated gray-eyed male looming next to her.

"What?" His pale-rose lips parted to allow the quiet, low syllable to escape, the strong, steely undertone threaded beneath a softly daring tone. (Y/N), startled, could not respond, even as the boy's full voice quietly sounded out again.

"This is mine."


End file.
